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Louisville State Recreation Area offers Tentrr camping, which includes spacious canvas safari platform tents with beds. The sites also include Adirondack chairs and fire pits.
OMAHA — Plenty of people still rely on a tent and a sleeping bag when they go camping.
But many more want a different experience.
Nebraska Game and Parks tries hard to accommodate everyone, says Bob Hanover, the assistant division administrator of state parks. Camping sites at Nebraska’s parks have been evolving for years in response to guests' feedback.
“People want options. They want choice. They want unique opportunities,” Hanover said. “We intentionally try to keep some rustic and natural. We intentionally try to make some more modern to accommodate the users.”
Camping with a recreational vehicle remains the top choice among Nebraskans. Cabins at parks such as Mahoney, Niobrara and Ponca also are very popular.
But through the years, Game and Parks has added options such as tepees, cabooses and glamping cabins, which include many of the luxuries of home.
The newest trend is a Tentrr, a canvas tent on a wood platform set up with everything a camper might need. There’s also a picnic table and fire ring, so users just need to bring personal items.
“It’s for people who want more of a luxurious experience, but it’s not quite glamping,” Hanover said. “It’s a fantastic opportunity.”
If you want to leave your sleeping bag or hammock at home, here are some unique opportunities from Game and Parks to check out. Make reservations at outdoornebraska.gov. You also can contact the reservation call center at 402-471-1414, which is open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The tepees at Platte River State Park, each with a wooden floor and other amenities, are just one example of the various options available to campers who want more than just a tent and sleeping bag.
Tepees at Platte River State Park: Each tepee can accommodate six to eight people. Wooden floors replace the packed earth of the traditional dwelling, offering added comfort, and a fire pit, picnic table, grill, water hydrant and pit toilet are nearby.
Two Rivers State Recreation Area features 10 repurposed Union Pacific cabooses, each with air conditioning and a modern bathroom and shower.
Cabooses at Two Rivers State Recreation Area: 10 Union Pacific cabooses have been remodeled and restored for park lodging. Up to six people can stay in a caboose, with two bunk beds in the rear and two mattresses in the cupola. The cabooses are air-conditioned and each have a modern bathroom and shower. The kitchen includes a stove, microwave, refrigerator and sink. A table, with four chairs and couch for two, serves as the dining area. If you prefer dining outside, there is a deck with picnic table, grill and fire ring.
Guests enjoy the deck of a glamping cabin at Platte River State Park. The queen-size bed in each cabin can be rolled onto the deck so campers can sleep under the stars.
Glamping cabins at Platte River State Park: Three glamping cabins combine modern comforts with a nature-immersive experience. Each cabin sleeps two, and the queen-size bed may be rolled through oversized French doors onto the deck so guests can sleep beneath the stars. The cabins also come equipped with linens, robes and slippers, a modern bathroom with shower, kitchenette, raised-stone fire pit, s’mores kit, wine glasses and much more.
The former officers' quarters are among the many historical lodging opportunities at Fort Robinson State Park, which was an active military base from 1874 to 1948.
Historic lodging at Fort Robinson State Park: An active military post from 1874 to 1948, Fort Robinson State Park is full of history. Today, visitors can enjoy staying in the stately buildings that once served as housing for the fort’s soldiers and officers. Visitors can stay in the 1909 enlisted men’s quarters or in the former officers' quarters, which date from 1874 to 1909. These options sleep between two and 20 people. Comanche Hall, which can sleep up to 60, is a great option for a family reunion or other large gathering. All options have kitchens, baths and bedrooms. Larger cabins also feature living rooms.
Tentrr Camping at Louisville State Recreation Area: The fully equipped, ready-to-go campsites are the newest way to experience Nebraska state parks. Spacious canvas safari tents come with a bed, Adirondack chairs and a fire pit. Tentrr sites are a great camping option for couples, families and groups like outdoor clubs. In addition to the platform tent, each site is equipped with one pop-up tent for additional campers. Learn more and book your stay at tentrr.com.
Campers enjoy a stay in one of the eight Adirondack shelters at Indian Cave State Park.
Adirondack shelters at Indian Cave State Park: Eight Adirondack shelters are scattered along the park’s trails. These three-sided wooden structures are perfect for campers who’d like extra shelter for their tents or sleeping bags. About half of the shelters have scenic views, and one area has three shelters close together, making it a popular choice for Scout groups. All Adirondack shelters are first-come, first-served. Fire rings are nearby.
Ponca State Park has two green cabins insulated with hay bales. These two-bedroom cabins also incorporate geothermal heating and cooling and eco-friendly lighting.
Green cabins at Ponca State Park: These are insulated with densely packed hay bales. They also incorporate geothermal heating and cooling, recycled building materials, and eco-friendly lighting and wastewater treatment. The two-bedroom cabins have queen-size beds, a modern kitchen and bathroom, dining area, big-screen TV, cable, wireless Internet, gas grill and an outdoor patio.
Traversing the state from west to east, the Platte River plays an important role in the lives of man, wildlife and fish throughout its length, providing habitat, water for drinking and irrigation and recreation for millions of creatures.
Fed by Sandhills springs via Merritt Reservoir, the Snake River seldom freezes. Mist rising from its falls, however, will coat everything around it with hoarfrost in sub-zero weather.
Fall color at Indian Cave State Park from scenic overlook on loop road.
A windmill is silhouetted against an orange and red sunset near Calamus Reservoir in Loup County.
Lightning decorates the sky above a patch of badlands west of Chadron in 2014.
Cloaked in early morning light and fog, the Niobrara River evokes nature's ethereal beauty and mystery as it flows through Cherry County.
Bull elk at sunrise in Sioux County.
A mule deer doe and fawn survey the landscape at sunset from a Sandhills ridge top in Cherry County.
Wagon Train Lake State Recreation Area near Hickman. Matt and Amy Ludwig of Adams kayaking at sunrise in 2013.
Sunset along the Mexican Canyon Road at Fort Robinson State Park near Crawford in Dawes County.
A midsummer storm moves noisily and colorfully across the Badlands north of Harrison. The colorless, sedimentary layers laid down by an ancient ocean, now exposed and eroded, are temporarily awash with color.
Goose hunters setting out decoys on the Platte River in Hall County.
The Missouri National Recreation River Visitor and Education Center at Ponca State Park in Dixon County is shown here.
A full moon hangs over grasslands and a windmill in Sioux County in 2014.
Chat Canyon Wildlife Management Area in Cherry County, acquired in 2013 and opened in 2014 in cooperation with Nebraska Forest Service as the state's first Forestry and Wildlife Management Area.
Buttes in winter in Nebraska.
The North Platte River near Lewellen. Canada geese and mallards swim in the wintry early morning mist.
The tallgrass prairie on Nine-Mile Prairie turns to fall colors in 1996.
The still water at Grabel Ponds reflects the colors of fall at Fort Robinson State Park.
The Platte River from the Lincoln Journal Tower at sunset, with the Lied Platte River Bridge (the converted Rock Island Railroad bridge) pictured.
A passing thunderstorm and lightning in Sandhills rangeland and meadows in the northwest corner of Cherry County.
Toadstool Geological Park in the Badlands north of Crawford in Sioux County at sunrise.
The setting sun at Prairie Wolf Wildlife Management Area in Nance County reflects on clouds seen through the silhouette of bluestem grass in 2004.
Shortgrass prairie with an impending thunderstorm 5 miles west and 1 mile north of Bushnell in Kimball County.
Grove Lake Wildlife Management Area and the east branch of Vertigre Creek in Antelope County.
Wildcat Hills near Gering in Scotts Bluff County.
Boating on Sherman Reservoir State Recreation Area in 2009.
The mouth of the Niobrara River on the Missouri River resembles the natural river with backwater sloughs and marshes.
Chat Canyon Wildlife Management Area in Cherry County.
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Louisville State Recreation Area offers Tentrr camping, which includes spacious canvas safari platform tents with beds. The sites also include Adirondack chairs and fire pits.
The tepees at Platte River State Park, each with a wooden floor and other amenities, are just one example of the various options available to campers who want more than just a tent and sleeping bag.
Guests enjoy the deck of a glamping cabin at Platte River State Park. The queen-size bed in each cabin can be rolled onto the deck so campers can sleep under the stars.
The former officers' quarters are among the many historical lodging opportunities at Fort Robinson State Park, which was an active military base from 1874 to 1948.
Ponca State Park has two green cabins insulated with hay bales. These two-bedroom cabins also incorporate geothermal heating and cooling and eco-friendly lighting.
Campers enjoy a stay in one of the eight Adirondack shelters at Indian Cave State Park.
Two Rivers State Recreation Area features 10 repurposed Union Pacific cabooses, each with air conditioning and a modern bathroom and shower.
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